The present invention relates to an external airbag system for automotive vehicles according to the preamble of claim 1 and to a vehicle according to claim 17.
Airbags for automotive applications have been widely described in the state of the art. Whereas internal airbags for preventing injuries in the case of side collisions have been presented, external airbags have been substantially described to protect pedestrians in the case of a collision with the front-end of a vehicle. The effects of side collisions between two vehicles are often more severe than front or rear collisions. Side collisions are a significant cause of road injuries. Side impacts account for 33.4% of fatalities and 28.1% of ail injuries in the US and represent 32.7% of all fatalities according to the UK, France and Swedish national data sets. The high severity level of side collisions is mainly due to the limited distance between the occupant and the struck vehicle's side as well as the short time between the beginning of the collision and the moment when the vehicle side structure contacts the occupant. Internal air-bags are often not sufficient to adequately protect the occupants of the vehicle in the case of a side collision. As a result, the occupants of the struck car often suffer from serious injuries resulting from vehicle deformations in the external side structure of the vehicle.